Reviews
Judgment calls are difficult when listing the greatest of anything, but this book does an excellent job of narrowing the list of space technology wonders to seven by highlighting a combination of specific spacecraft and more general categories. The general chapters are Chapters 1, on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope, Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer Space Telescope; 3, on Earth satellites and weather satellites; 4, on moon bases and moon water, as well as recent lunar missions, such as Clementine, Lunar Prospector, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), and Chandrayaan-1, launched by India; 5, on the Mars Rovers--Sojourn, Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, and the future craft Curiosity; and 7, on future technologies--solar sails and plasmadrive rockets, including the Dawn craft now on its way to asteroid Vesta. The two chapters on single craft are Chapters 2, on the International Space Station; and 6, on the New Horizons mission to Pluto, with a summary of all seven of its instruments for a total power consumption of only 28 watts! (p. 55). The book has a one-page time line; a listing of sources, including websites used in the preparation of the text; and a bibliography. Both English and metric units are used. Only one statement dates the text at present: the one with the reference to the future retirement of the Shuttle fleet in 2011 (p. 14). The text has an error on page 35: Under an illustration of a lunar astronaut, the caption reads, '... Aldrin became the first human to walk on the Moon in 1969'; actually, he was the second. A unique aspect of this book is its suggested reader project, 'Choose an Eighth Wonder' (p. 73). Although this profusely illustrated book may seem short, it really is worth the price! --Science Books & Films --Journal This series of seven books explores the wonders of space, highlighting many recent discoveries that are changing our ideas daily. The series concentrates on aspects of astronomy that are less known to the general public and reveals the depth of recent explorations and the vast amounts of knowledge that has been obtained in the past few years. The contributions of technology to human exploration are shown as essential components of the discoveries. In this book, the technology and inventions that make space exploration possible are shown and explained in substantial detail. The chapter titles provide an idea of the scope: Observatories, the International Space Station, satellites, moon bases, Mars rovers and future technologies. Since the history of space exploration parallels the history of our exploratory tools, Bortz properly starts with Stonehenge but quickly moves on to the Hubble (1990), the Compton Gamma Ray (1991), the Chandra X-Ray (1999) and the Spitzer, an infrared space observatory (2003). These observatories have immensely increased the scope of what astronomers are able to detect and those images are among the most striking in the book. The fact that each observatory detects a particular type of radiation is used to explain why these devices add so much to our knowledge, enabling us to see what no one really can and deduce information about stars and galaxies that we otherwise could not. Chapter 2 deals with the International Space Station, a remarkable cooperative effort by scientists from so many nations, and provides a much needed recent history of human space programs. The other chapters continue at this same highly informative level, explaining weather and GPS satellites, lunar exploration (for water), Mars rovers, and the New Horizons probe now on its way toward Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Short segments of text in almost every spread give an overview of the main ideas involved, helping students digest the generous supply of data. At the end, a timeline is provided, stretching from ancient times all the way to the present. There is a good glossary and a list of reliable websites for further study. This book is highly recommended for the capable and/or talented reader in middle school, and up through high school. The text is readable but the content is deep and the information is wide-ranging and detailed. It would provide many anecdotes and interesting detail for the teacher who gives mini-lectures as well. --NSTA --Website 'People love to make lists of the biggest and the best, ' begins each of these four awe-inspiring volumes in the Seven Wonders series, each of which introduces readers to outer space in targeted volumes with an intriguing 'greatest hits' approach. Seven Wonders beyond the Solar System discusses how stars and galaxies form and how scientists search for 'the most Earthlike planet, ' as well as the most noteworthy nebulae, pulsars, and superclusters. Seven Wonders of the Gas Giants and Their Moons celebrates the most unique features of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, including companion moons and Saturn's mysterious rings. Seven Wonders of the Rocky Planets and Their Moons compares the fascinating diversity of Earth's land masses with those on Mars, Venus, and Mercury. And Seven Wonders of Space Technology highlights some of astronomy's greatest technical advancements, from land observatories to spinning satellites to moon bases. Each volume makes basic concepts clear in lively, energetic language that, along with the mesmerizing color photos and artists' renderings of space, will easily captivate a young audience, while up-to-date examples, including discoveries made in the last five years, will only increase the sense of immediacy and excitement. Great choices for classroom use or personal reading, these titles close with a time line, glossary, source notes, and an interactive challenge to students to add an 'eighth wonder' to the marvels spotlighted in each volume. --Booklist --Journal In this useful, well-organized volume, Bortz profiles seven major technological advancements in space exploration. Some--such as telescopes and satellites, the International Space Station, and Mars rovers--have already been deployed; the book's 'New Horizons' and 'Future Technologies' chapters speculate on what might be the next big thing. Photographs illustrate the existing technologies while artists' renderings imagine innovations of the future. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal
Judgment calls are difficult when listing the greatest of anything, but this book does an excellent job of narrowing the list of space technology wonders to seven by highlighting a combination of specific spacecraft and more general categories. The general chapters are Chapters 1, on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope, Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer Space Telescope; 3, on Earth satellites and weather satellites; 4, on moon bases and moon water, as well as recent lunar missions, such as Clementine, Lunar Prospector, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), and Chandrayaan-1, launched by India; 5, on the Mars Rovers--Sojourn, Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, and the future craft Curiosity; and 7, on future technologies--solar sails and plasmadrive rockets, including the Dawn craft now on its way to asteroid Vesta. The two chapters on single craft are Chapters 2, on the International Space Station; and 6, on the New Horizons mission to Pluto, with a summary of all seven of its instruments for a total power consumption of only 28 watts! (p. 55). The book has a one-page time line; a listing of sources, including websites used in the preparation of the text; and a bibliography. Both English and metric units are used. Only one statement dates the text at present: the one with the reference to the future retirement of the Shuttle fleet in 2011 (p. 14). The text has an error on page 35: Under an illustration of a lunar astronaut, the caption reads, '... Aldrin became the first human to walk on the Moon in 1969'; actually, he was the second. A unique aspect of this book is its suggested reader project, 'Choose an Eighth Wonder' (p. 73). Although this profusely illustrated book may seem short, it really is worth the price! --Science Books & Films --Journal In this useful, well-organized volume, Bortz profiles seven major technological advancements in space exploration. Some--such as telescopes and satellites, the International Space Station, and Mars rovers--have already been deployed; the book's 'New Horizons' and 'Future Technologies' chapters speculate on what might be the next big thing. Photographs illustrate the existing technologies while artists' renderings imagine innovations of the future. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal 'People love to make lists of the biggest and the best, ' begins each of these four awe-inspiring volumes in the Seven Wonders series, each of which introduces readers to outer space in targeted volumes with an intriguing 'greatest hits' approach. Seven Wonders beyond the Solar System discusses how stars and galaxies form and how scientists search for 'the most Earthlike planet, ' as well as the most noteworthy nebulae, pulsars, and superclusters. Seven Wonders of the Gas Giants and Their Moons celebrates the most unique features of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, including companion moons and Saturn's mysterious rings. Seven Wonders of the Rocky Planets and Their Moons compares the fascinating diversity of Earth's land masses with those on Mars, Venus, and Mercury. And Seven Wonders of Space Technology highlights some of astronomy's greatest technical advancements, from land observatories to spinning satellites to moon bases. Each volume makes basic concepts clear in lively, energetic language that, along with the mesmerizing color photos and artists' renderings of space, will easily captivate a young audience, while up-to-date examples, including discoveries made in the last five years, will only increase the sense of immediacy and excitement. Great choices for classroom use or personal reading, these titles close with a time line, glossary, source notes, and an interactive challenge to students to add an 'eighth wonder' to the marvels spotlighted in each volume. --Booklist --Journal This series of seven books explores the wonders of space, highlighting many recent discoveries that are changing our ideas daily. The series concentrates on aspects of astronomy that are less known to the general public and reveals the depth of recent explorations and the vast amounts of knowledge that has been obtained in the past few years. The contributions of technology to human exploration are shown as essential components of the discoveries. In this book, the technology and inventions that make space exploration possible are shown and explained in substantial detail. The chapter titles provide an idea of the scope: Observatories, the International Space Station, satellites, moon bases, Mars rovers and future technologies. Since the history of space exploration parallels the history of our exploratory tools, Bortz properly starts with Stonehenge but quickly moves on to the Hubble (1990), the Compton Gamma Ray (1991), the Chandra X-Ray (1999) and the Spitzer, an infrared space observatory (2003). These observatories have immensely increased the scope of what astronomers are able to detect and those images are among the most striking in the book. The fact that each observatory detects a particular type of radiation is used to explain why these devices add so much to our knowledge, enabling us to see what no one really can and deduce information about stars and galaxies that we otherwise could not. Chapter 2 deals with the International Space Station, a remarkable cooperative effort by scientists from so many nations, and provides a much needed recent history of human space programs. The other chapters continue at this same highly informative level, explaining weather and GPS satellites, lunar exploration (for water), Mars rovers, and the New Horizons probe now on its way toward Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Short segments of text in almost every spread give an overview of the main ideas involved, helping students digest the generous supply of data. At the end, a timeline is provided, stretching from ancient times all the way to the present. There is a good glossary and a list of reliable websites for further study. This book is highly recommended for the capable and/or talented reader in middle school, and up through high school. The text is readable but the content is deep and the information is wide-ranging and detailed. It would provide many anecdotes and interesting detail for the teacher who gives mini-lectures as well. --NSTA --Website
This series of seven books explores the wonders of space, highlighting many recent discoveries that are changing our ideas daily. The series concentrates on aspects of astronomy that are less known to the general public and reveals the depth of recent explorations and the vast amounts of knowledge that has been obtained in the past few years. The contributions of technology to human exploration are shown as essential components of the discoveries. In this book, the technology and inventions that make space exploration possible are shown and explained in substantial detail. The chapter titles provide an idea of the scope: Observatories, the International Space Station, satellites, moon bases, Mars rovers and future technologies. Since the history of space exploration parallels the history of our exploratory tools, Bortz properly starts with Stonehenge but quickly moves on to the Hubble (1990), the Compton Gamma Ray (1991), the Chandra X-Ray (1999) and the Spitzer, an infrared space observatory (2003). These observatories have immensely increased the scope of what astronomers are able to detect and those images are among the most striking in the book. The fact that each observatory detects a particular type of radiation is used to explain why these devices add so much to our knowledge, enabling us to see what no one really can and deduce information about stars and galaxies that we otherwise could not. Chapter 2 deals with the International Space Station, a remarkable cooperative effort by scientists from so many nations, and provides a much needed recent history of human space programs. The other chapters continue at this same highly informative level, explaining weather and GPS satellites, lunar exploration (for water), Mars rovers, and the New Horizons probe now on its way toward Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Short segments of text in almost every spread give an overview of the main ideas involved, helping students digest the generous supply of data. At the end, a timeline is provided, stretching from ancient times all the way to the present. There is a good glossary and a list of reliable websites for further study. This book is highly recommended for the capable and/or talented reader in middle school, and up through high school. The text is readable but the content is deep and the information is wide-ranging and detailed. It would provide many anecdotes and interesting detail for the teacher who gives mini-lectures as well. --NSTA --Website In this useful, well-organized volume, Bortz profiles seven major technological advancements in space exploration. Some--such as telescopes and satellites, the International Space Station, and Mars rovers--have already been deployed; the book's 'New Horizons' and 'Future Technologies' chapters speculate on what might be the next big thing. Photographs illustrate the existing technologies while artists' renderings imagine innovations of the future. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal Judgment calls are difficult when listing the greatest of anything, but this book does an excellent job of narrowing the list of space technology wonders to seven by highlighting a combination of specific spacecraft and more general categories. The general chapters are Chapters 1, on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope, Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer Space Telescope; 3, on Earth satellites and weather satellites; 4, on moon bases and moon water, as well as recent lunar missions, such as Clementine, Lunar Prospector, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), and Chandrayaan-1, launched by India; 5, on the Mars Rovers--Sojourn, Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, and the future craft Curiosity; and 7, on future technologies--solar sails and plasmadrive rockets, including the Dawn craft now on its way to asteroid Vesta. The two chapters on single craft are Chapters 2, on the International Space Station; and 6, on the New Horizons mission to Pluto, with a summary of all seven of its instruments for a total power consumption of only 28 watts! (p. 55). The book has a one-page time line; a listing of sources, including websites used in the preparation of the text; and a bibliography. Both English and metric units are used. Only one statement dates the text at present: the one with the reference to the future retirement of the Shuttle fleet in 2011 (p. 14). The text has an error on page 35: Under an illustration of a lunar astronaut, the caption reads, '... Aldrin became the first human to walk on the Moon in 1969'; actually, he was the second. A unique aspect of this book is its suggested reader project, 'Choose an Eighth Wonder' (p. 73). Although this profusely illustrated book may seem short, it really is worth the price! --Science Books & Films --Journal 'People love to make lists of the biggest and the best, ' begins each of these four awe-inspiring volumes in the Seven Wonders series, each of which introduces readers to outer space in targeted volumes with an intriguing 'greatest hits' approach. Seven Wonders beyond the Solar System discusses how stars and galaxies form and how scientists search for 'the most Earthlike planet, ' as well as the most noteworthy nebulae, pulsars, and superclusters. Seven Wonders of the Gas Giants and Their Moons celebrates the most unique features of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, including companion moons and Saturn's mysterious rings. Seven Wonders of the Rocky Planets and Their Moons compares the fascinating diversity of Earth's land masses with those on Mars, Venus, and Mercury. And Seven Wonders of Space Technology highlights some of astronomy's greatest technical advancements, from land observatories to spinning satellites to moon bases. Each volume makes basic concepts clear in lively, energetic language that, along with the mesmerizing color photos and artists' renderings of space, will easily captivate a young audience, while up-to-date examples, including discoveries made in the last five years, will only increase the sense of immediacy and excitement. Great choices for classroom use or personal reading, these titles close with a time line, glossary, source notes, and an interactive challenge to students to add an 'eighth wonder' to the marvels spotlighted in each volume. --Booklist --Journal
Judgment calls are difficult when listing the greatest of anything, but this book does an excellent job of narrowing the list of space technology wonders to seven by highlighting a combination of specific spacecraft and more general categories. The general chapters are Chapters 1, on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope, Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer Space Telescope; 3, on Earth satellites and weather satellites; 4, on moon bases and moon water, as well as recent lunar missions, such as Clementine, Lunar Prospector, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), and Chandrayaan-1, launched by India; 5, on the Mars Rovers--Sojourn, Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, and the future craft Curiosity; and 7, on future technologies--solar sails and plasmadrive rockets, including the Dawn craft now on its way to asteroid Vesta. The two chapters on single craft are Chapters 2, on the International Space Station; and 6, on the New Horizons mission to Pluto, with a summary of all seven of its instruments for a total power consumption of only 28 watts! (p. 55). The book has a one-page time line; a listing of sources, including websites used in the preparation of the text; and a bibliography. Both English and metric units are used. Only one statement dates the text at present: the one with the reference to the future retirement of the Shuttle fleet in 2011 (p. 14). The text has an error on page 35: Under an illustration of a lunar astronaut, the caption reads, '... Aldrin became the first human to walk on the Moon in 1969'; actually, he was the second. A unique aspect of this book is its suggested reader project, 'Choose an Eighth Wonder' (p. 73). Although this profusely illustrated book may seem short, it really is worth the price! --Science Books & Films --Journal This series of seven books explores the wonders of space, highlighting many recent discoveries that are changing our ideas daily. The series concentrates on aspects of astronomy that are less known to the general public and reveals the depth of recent explorations and the vast amounts of knowledge that has been obtained in the past few years. The contributions of technology to human exploration are shown as essential components of the discoveries. In this book, the technology and inventions that make space exploration possible are shown and explained in substantial detail. The chapter titles provide an idea of the scope: Observatories, the International Space Station, satellites, moon bases, Mars rovers and future technologies. Since the history of space exploration parallels the history of our exploratory tools, Bortz properly starts with Stonehenge but quickly moves on to the Hubble (1990), the Compton Gamma Ray (1991), the Chandra X-Ray (1999) and the Spitzer, an infrared space observatory (2003). These observatories have immensely increased the scope of what astronomers are able to detect and those images are among the most striking in the book. The fact that each observatory detects a particular type of radiation is used to explain why these devices add so much to our knowledge, enabling us to see what no one really can and deduce information about stars and galaxies that we otherwise could not. Chapter 2 deals with the International Space Station, a remarkable cooperative effort by scientists from so many nations, and provides a much needed recent history of human space programs. The other chapters continue at this same highly informative level, explaining weather and GPS satellites, lunar exploration (for water), Mars rovers, and the New Horizons probe now on its way toward Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. Short segments of text in almost every spread give an overview of the main ideas involved, helping students digest the generous supply of data. At the end, a timeline is provided, stretching from ancient times all the way to the present. There is a good glossary and a list of reliable websites for further study. This book is highly recommended for the capable and/or talented reader in middle school, and up through high school. The text is readable but the content is deep and the information is wide-ranging and detailed. It would provide many anecdotes and interesting detail for the teacher who gives mini-lectures as well. --NSTA --Website In this useful, well-organized volume, Bortz profiles seven major technological advancements in space exploration. Some--such as telescopes and satellites, the International Space Station, and Mars rovers--have already been deployed; the book's 'New Horizons' and 'Future Technologies' chapters speculate on what might be the next big thing. Photographs illustrate the existing technologies while artists' renderings imagine innovations of the future. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal 'People love to make lists of the biggest and the best, ' begins each of these four awe-inspiring volumes in the Seven Wonders series, each of which introduces readers to outer space in targeted volumes with an intriguing 'greatest hits' approach. Seven Wonders beyond the Solar System discusses how stars and galaxies form and how scientists search for 'the most Earthlike planet, ' as well as the most noteworthy nebulae, pulsars, and superclusters. Seven Wonders of the Gas Giants and Their Moons celebrates the most unique features of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, including companion moons and Saturn's mysterious rings. Seven Wonders of the Rocky Planets and Their Moons compares the fascinating diversity of Earth's land masses with those on Mars, Venus, and Mercury. And Seven Wonders of Space Technology highlights some of astronomy's greatest technical advancements, from land observatories to spinning satellites to moon bases. Each volume makes basic concepts clear in lively, energetic language that, along with the mesmerizing color photos and artists' renderings of space, will easily captivate a young audience, while up-to-date examples, including discoveries made in the last five years, will only increase the sense of immediacy and excitement. Great choices for classroom use or personal reading, these titles close with a time line, glossary, source notes, and an interactive challenge to students to add an 'eighth wonder' to the marvels spotlighted in each volume. --Booklist --Journal
